Sardinia, a child finds a 5,000-year-old amulet. And Franceschini compliments

Interesting archaeological discovery in Sardinia, where, in the necropolis of Santu Pedru (Alghero), an amulet dating back five thousand years has been found. The discoverer? A 10-year-old boy, Pietro Pais, who attends fifth grade at a school in Usini (Sassari). The little archaeologist found the find a few days ago during a visit to the domus de janas (the rock-cut tombs typical of pre-Nuragic Sardinia) in Santu Pedru, during a field trip with his class, under the guidance of archaeologist Luca Doro. The tomb where the discovery took place is No. 1 on the site, was discovered in 1959 by Ercole Contu, and returned hundreds of artifacts, including the “tetrapod vessels” from which it later took its name. The students had visited all the cells of the tomb, under the guidance of Dr. Doro, who oversaw their education on the history and archaeology of Sardinia.

Pietro Pais found the find in the topsoil stirred up by wildlife: it was a lithic pendant with a hole at the end, dating back to the third millennium before Christ. The find was then delivered to the restoration and conservation center of the Sassari Superintendency, where it will be cleaned and documented, and will then be displayed at the Archaeological Museum of Alghero. The discovery dates back to June 18. Luca Doro explained its significance and possible dating: an amulet, or a pendant made from a brassard (bracelet) of an archer from the 3rd millennium B.C., or, a hypothesis yet to be verified, a weight within a Bronze Age weight system? Future investigations will be able to clarify this, stimulated precisely by this find, which, as archaeologist Gabriella Gasperetti of the Sassari Superintendence announced, will also lead to the allocation of new economic resources for research in the necropolis.

For little Pietro, for teacher Lucia Manuedda and for the archaeological site, therefore, a truly satisfying field trip. So much so that the minister of culture, Dario Franceschini, also made himself heard, commenting on the find: “The story of little Pietro and his discovery at the necropolis of Domus de Janas,” said the minister, “is very beautiful and makes one understand how any initiative that brings the youngest children into contact with cultural heritage is fundamental for forming the citizens of tomorrow.”

“We brought the greetings and thanks of the city to young Pietro and all his classmates all together protagonists of this wonderful discovery,” said instead the Alghero’s councillor of Culture, Alessandro Cocco. “Our archaeological sites, which represent the very distant roots of our identity, are still alive. This new find proves this and reminds us how important it is to get the youngest children excited about history and discovery, even the most casual.”

Pictured, center, little Peter. Photo by Gabriella Gasperetti

Sardinia, a child finds a 5,000-year-old amulet. And Franceschini compliments

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